How to Make Your Airbnb or Rental Smell Like a Hotel

Simple ways for Airbnb and short-term rental hosts to make every stay smell clean and hotel-like, with a signature scent that's easy to maintain between guests.

Guests notice a rental's smell the moment they open the door, and it shapes how they feel about the whole stay. The best hosts treat scent like hotels do: one clean, consistent signature, kept up with almost no effort.

Start with clean air

• Air the place out for 15 minutes during every turnover.
• Wash throws and cushion covers regularly; fabric holds smells from previous guests.
• Empty and wipe every bin, including the bathroom.

Choose one signature scent

A single, clean scent through the whole rental reads as "hotel". Fresh, widely loved scents work best for guests you've never met:

• Thé Blanc: white tea and aloe. Clean and calm.
• Grand Foyer: bergamot, white jasmine and water lily. Bright, like a hotel lobby.

Put it where guests notice

1. Entrance: a 200 ml reed diffuser, the first impression.
2. Bathroom: a 100 ml travel reed diffuser.
3. Bedroom: keep it light, or skip it.

Reed diffusers are flame-free, so they're safe to leave for guests, and a 200 ml diffuser lasts 60–90 days.

Keep it going between guests

Top up with a refill every couple of months and change the reeds. Hosts with several properties can put refills and diffusers on a standing order, delivered on a schedule. See wholesale for hotels and rentals.

Explore: the Scaldera Arch · Shop the collection · Take the Scent Quiz · Membership · Refill subscription

More from the Journal

• Never Run Out: Why Businesses Put Their Scent on a Standing Order — How a standing order for diffuser oil, refills and reed diffusers works, and why salons, offices, gyms and hotels use one to keep their space smelling the same every week.
• The Best Scents for a Gym or Fitness Studio — Which scents keep a gym, yoga studio or fitness space smelling fresh, and how to scent large floors, change rooms and washrooms without overpowering members.
• How Much Scent Diffuser Oil Does a Business Use Per Month? — A simple way to estimate how much cold-air diffuser oil your salon, office, gym or hotel will use each month, so you can order the right amount and never run out.